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Last edited May 4, 2026


Institute Main Building, IIT Kharagpur
IIM Calcutta's Auditorium
The Auditorium at IIM Calcutta

The Indian state of West Bengal is the site of India's first modern university. Thirty-three universities are listed in the state by the University Grants Commission.[1]

In West Bengal the medium of instruction in colleges and universities is usually Bengali or English. Diploma, certificate courses, advanced diploma program, postgraduate courses and doctoral programs are offered. Research programs offered by the universities are conducted with the aid of specialised institutes.

History

Early years

Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal has played a pioneering role in the development of the modern education system in India. Western models of education came to India through this city. Many of the first schools and colleges were established by the missionaries and reformists. Sir William Jones (philologist) established the Asiatic Society in 1784 for promoting oriental studies. People like Ram Mohan Roy, David Hare, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Ashutosh Mukherjee and William Carey played a leading role in the setting up of modern schools and colleges in the city. The Fort William College was established in 1800. The Hindu College was established in 1817, renamed the Presidency College in 1855.[2]

William Carey established the Serampore College in the city of Serampore in 1818. It went on to become India's first modern university in 1827 when it was incorporated by a Royal Charter as a Danish University. The Sanskrit College was established in 1824. Reverend Alexander Duff of the Church of Scotland established the General Assembly's Institution in 1830 and later the Free Church Institution in 1844, which were later merged to form what is now known as the Scottish Church College, Calcutta. These institutions played a significant role in what came to be known as the Young Bengal Movement and the Bengal Renaissance. La Martiniere Calcutta was established in 1836.

The oldest medical school in Asia, the Calcutta Medical College was set up in 1835. In 1857, the University of Calcutta was established as the first full-fledged multi-disciplinary university in south Asia. It was modelled on the lines of the University of London. Today it is amongst the largest multidisciplinary universities of India and offers some of the widest number of academic disciplines for study.

John Bethune established a school for Indian girls in 1850 at a time when women's education was frowned upon in the society. The Bethune College for girls was set up by him in 1879.[3]

In 1856 technical and engineering education came with the establishment of a civil engineering college / department. This setup went through various reorganisations to finally become the Bengal Engineering College in 1921. The Jesuit administered St Xavier's College was established in 1860. Bengal Engineering and Science University is the second oldest engineering institutes in the country and it was started in the year 1864. They offer the following programs such as B.E, M.E, MCA, MBA, MSC, B. Arch. and Ph.D. programs. Apart from this they also provide part-time courses in the evening for the professionals.[4]Template:Better source needed

The nation's first homoeopathy college was established in the city in 1880. In 1883 Kadambini Ganguly and Chandramukhi Basu became the first women graduates from the University of Calcutta. In the process, they became the first female graduates of the British Empire. Kadambini went on to become the first female physician trained in the Western system of medicine in South Asia.

20th century

In 1906, the partition of Bengal led to widespread nationalistic and anti-British feelings.[5] This led to the setting up of the National Council of Education, Bengal. The Science College was established in 1917. The first blind school came into being in 1925.

After independence, Calcutta continued to be in the forefront of the educational scene. The Government College of Art & Craft was established in 1951. The National Council of Education became the Jadavpur University in 1955. The Rabindra Bharati University was established in 1962. This university offers courses in the fine and performing arts. The Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management was set up in 1953 as the country's first management institute and is also the first in the country to offer an MBA degree of a university. The first, Indian Institute of Technology was set up at Kharagpur about Template:Cvt from Calcutta. In 1960 the Regional Engineering college (presently National Institute of Technology) at Durgapur was set up. It is amongst the top NITs in India and also among the oldest. Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, the first among the Indian Institutes of Management, was set up in 1961 at Joka. It was the first national institute for post-graduate studies and research in management sciences. It was established with the help of the MIT Sloan School of Management and the Ford Foundation.

Institutes with national or special status

Institutes and universities with particular special status or funding arrangements include: Institutes of Eminence (IoE), Institutes of National Importance (INI); central universities, Government Funded Technical Institutes (GFTI); and the deemed universities. Types with specialist functions include research institutes and universities with national recognition for their field of education.

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Universities, state and private

Universities in India may be public or private. Other than the central universitiesTemplate:Sndof which there is one in West BengalTemplate:Sndpublic universities are funded by the state government. Non-government universities are privately funded. Public state universities are listed in the first table shown below, with private universities in a separate second table below that. Template:Sticky header

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Medical and dental colleges

Medical

There are several types of medical colleges in West Bengal with funding from different sources. Of the thirty-three listed below, nine are privately funded, and twenty-three are state government-funded. One is centrally-funded and -administered by the Indian Ministry of Labour and Employment through the autonomous Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC). The West Bengal University of Health Sciences (WBUHS) is the affiliating university with jurisdiction for medical colleges in the state. Template:Sticky header

Dental

AYUSH institutions

AYUSH institutions provide training in alternative medicine and traditional health care systems of South Asia (ayurveda, yoga and naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, Sowa Rigpa, and homeopathy). These systems are governed in India by the ministry of Ayush.

Homeopathic

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Ayurvedic

Template:Col-begin Template:Col-1-of-2 Government Funded:

Template:Col-2-of-2 Privately Funded:

  • Rajib Gandhi Ayurvedic Medical College & Hospital.
  • Raghunath Ayurved Mahavidyalaya and Hospital.

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Unani

Sowa-Rigpa

  • Chagpori Tibetan Medical Institute[94]

Allied Health Sciences Institutions

Engineering universities and colleges

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Government degree colleges

Government general degree colleges (GGDC) are public educational institutes set up and administered under the University Grants Commission (UGC). State or union governments manage them, but the colleges are affiliated to a university for their course structure. Template:Div col

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General colleges affiliated with universities

With Burdwan University

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With University of Calcutta

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With University of Kalyani

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With Kazi Nazrul University

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With Bankura University

With Vidyasagar University

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With West Bengal State University

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List of colleges by districts

Alipurduar

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Bankura

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Birbhum

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Cooch Behar

In Cooch Behar: Template:Div col

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Dakshin Dinajpur

Darjeeling

Within Darjeeling: Template:Div col

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Hooghly

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Howrah

In Howrah: Template:Div col

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Jalpaiguri

In Jalpaiguri: Template:Div col

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Jhargram

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Kalimpong

Kolkata

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Malda

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Murshidabad

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Nadia district

Located in Nadia district: Template:Div col

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North 24 Parganas

Located within North 24 Parganas: Template:Div col

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Paschim Bardhaman

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Pashim Medinipur

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Purba Bardhaman

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Purba Medinipur

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Purulia

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South 24 Parganas

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Uttar Dinajpur

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